San Francisco de Assisi Mission Church, Ranchos de Taos, NM

Posted byChristi IfferganPosted inNew MexicoTags:, , ,

I’ve left Taos & am on my way to Denali; however, I will be sharing more posts from my time in Taos & New Mexico. I’m currently in Pocatello, Idaho & have about 2,000 miles to drive to Alaska. I’ve visited some amazing places & look forward to telling you about them.

Last month I visited the San Francisco de Assisi Mission Church.  They were holding a funeral mass & I wasn’t able to go inside that day.  However, that changed when I had friends visit.

The Spanish colonists were well established in New Mexico by the 18th century, a period when Spain was at the height of its imperial power in North America. Around this time, civilian Spanish and Mexican families began to settle permanently in Ranchos de Taos, in northern New Mexico. By the mid-18th century, this Catholic agricultural village founded the San Francisco de Assisi Mission. The Franciscans supervised the construction of the historic church between 1772 and 1816. A National Historic Landmark, the Spanish Colonial San Francisco de Assisi Mission Church is a well-preserved adobe building in the heart of the community at the center plaza of the Ranchos de Taos Historic District.

https://www.nps.gov/nr/travel/american_latino_heritage/san_francisco_de_assisi_mission_church.html

The church is one of the most painted & photographed churches in the world. It was the subject of several paintings by Georgia O’Keefe and photographs by Ansel Adams. Georgia O’Keeffe described it as “one of the most beautiful buildings left in the United States by the early Spaniards.”

Published by Christi Iffergan

Hi! I am Christi, a full-time RV traveller since August 2021. I have always loved to travel, but COVID-19 put a stop to that. I was fast approaching 50, my condo was being placed up for sale and I was ready for a major change. Originally from a tiny town in rural Southwest Virginia, I am the mother to one son and a rescue Shih Tzu, Cappy. For the last 20 years, I worked in public library systems around the Charlotte & Myrtle Beach areas. I met some amazing people and made great friends along the way. Follow along on my adventures as I travel the US. I hope that our paths will cross one day!

8 thoughts on “San Francisco de Assisi Mission Church, Ranchos de Taos, NM”

  4. Thanks for continuing to share you photos and stories of your travels. The church is beautiful! I think that I may have seen it on an episode of McCloud. You may recall that actor Dennis Weaver, who played the deputy, Chester, on the series GUNSMOKE, Later played the lead role as a temporary NY policeman on the TV series GUNSMOKE. Thanks again for sharing the picture.

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  6. Hi 👋, glad to see you’re back and on some more wonderful adventures to share with us. I loved the church, such beautiful characteristics of Spanish style to take you back into time, it reminds me of some of the churches you’d see in the old western movies, thanks for sharing and glad you resurfaced , missed you, now on to our next adventure with you 💖🤗

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